Art & Architecture
article | Reading time5 min
Like a treasure hunt, find the traces of the houses, the old walls and even the priories of the medieval abbey, now merged with the streets of the town of Cluny.
Medieval houses
Beyond the abbey grounds, discover several Romanesque house facades with clerestories like those of the Maison des Dragons. They feature their best street-side facades, decorated with small arcades, columns and capitals. Made in the same workshops as those of the abbey, these architectural decorations showed passers-by the wealth of the owners of the village of Cluny.
Did you know?
The first floor, often rented out, was used for storage or commercial purposes. At the rear, these houses opened onto small private gardens.
© Centre des monuments nationaux / David Bordes
The priory of Hugues de Semur
15 km from Cluny on the way to Mâcon, admire the murals in the Berzé monks' chapel, a 12th-centurymasterpiece and the only surviving example of monumental painting in Cluny during the abbey's heyday.
The priory was created by Cluny abbot Hugues de Semur. Isolated from the hustle and bustle of Cluny Abbey, the priory welcomed distinguished guests.
The paintings in this small chapel are a perfect example of those that adorned the choir of Cluny Abbey.
© Centre des monuments nationaux / David Bordes
